Activists protest outside Bihar Bhawan\, seek Nitish Kumar\'s resignation over deaths of children

Activists protest outside Bihar Bhawan, seek Nitish Kumar's resignation over deaths of children

Press Trust of India  |  New Delhi 

Several activists from different organisations staged a protest outside the here Tuesday and demanded the resignation of Kumar as more than 100 children have died due to Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) in the state.

Many held placards with the message "Give adequate compensation to affected families".

Other banners asked Kumar and Bihar to resign.

"Ayushman (Bharat) ki jumlebazi band karo," another read.

Several women activists raised slogans against Kumar, who once was called 'sushashan babu' because of his governance, and outside the Chanakyapuri-based

A delegation of the activists later submitted a memorandum to the resident of Bihar in The memorandum was addressed to Kumar.

"We are anguished and urge the government to provide adequate medical facilities, particularly in Muzaffarpur, to attend to the patients," the memorandum read.

It sought a thorough study into outbreak.

Members of All Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA), Centre of Trade Unions, Dalit Shoshan Mukti Mamch, Democratic Youth Federation of and participated in the protest.

Mariam Dhawale, of AIDWA, said the Bihar chose to visit Muzaffarpur on Tuesday while reports of children dying in the city have been coming for days.

"It is shameful and he must tender resignation. The Bihar health minister, who has been inefficient in handling the issue, should also step down," she said.

An AIDWA delegation had visited Muzaffarpur and assessed the situation in hospitals there. "It is filthy, overcrowded with four children on one bed, inadequate medicines and lack of doctors. How do we intend to battle this outbreak," she asked.

Dhalwale said that these deaths should be treated as "institutional murders".

Meanwhile in Muzaffarpur, public grief gave way to outrage as angry people raised slogans against the Bihar as he held held a meeting with officials.

The death toll has climbed to 105 with both the and Hospital (SKMCH) and the privately-owned reporting one casualty during the night, the district administration said.

Union visited SKMCH on Sunday, when a strike by doctors had paralysed medical services. He was accompanied by his deputy and the Bihar

Dhawale of the AIDWA said Vardhan had visited Muzaffarpur in 2014 too as the and promised to build a research centre.

"What happened to that promise," she asked.

Dalit Shoshan Mukti Mamch's Pyare Lal said a massive amount of money was spent on the election and everyone was busy talking about campaigns and before that the Ram Mandir issue.

"As a nation, we have got our priorities wrong," he said.

Traffic was briefly restricted on a section of a street between and Gujarat Bhawan due to the protest and another in front of the Gujarat Bhawan.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

First Published: Tue, June 18 2019. 16:05 IST